Chapter 2: Population · 2016. 12. 17. · © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Chapter 2: Population The Cultural Landscape: An Introduction to Human Geography

© 2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

Chapter 2: Population

The Cultural Landscape:

An Introduction to Human Geography


Critical Issues in Population Geography

• More people are alive today than at any

other time in human history

• The world’s population increased at a

faster rate during the second half of the

twentieth century than every before.

• Virtually all population growth today

occurs in less developed countries

(LDCs)


Where Is the World’s Population Distributed?

• Population concentrations

– Two-thirds of the world’s population are in

four regions:

• East Asia

• South Asia

• Europe

• Southeast Asia


Population Distribution

Figure 2-2



• Sparsely populated regions

– The ecumene

– People generally avoid:

• Dry lands

• Wet lands

• Cold lands

• High lands


Ecumene

Figure 2-4



• Population density

– Arithmetic density

– Physiological density

– Agricultural density


Measures of Density

Table 2-1


Where Has the World’s Population Increased?

• Natural increase rate

– The percentage by which a population grows in a

year

• Crude birth rate (CBR)

– The number of births per 1,000 population

• Crude death rate (CDR)

– The number of deaths per 1,000 population

• Doubling time

– The number of years needed to double a

population


World Population Growth

Figure 2-8


Where Has the World’s Population Increased?

• Fertility

– Total fertility rate (TFR)

• Mortality

– Infant mortality rate (IMR)

– Life expectancy


• Notice that places with high TFRs tend to have high IMRs and that places with low TFRs

have low IMRs.

Figure 2-13

Figure 2-14


Why Is Population Increasing at Different Rates?

• Demographic transition

– Four stages

• Stage 1: Low growth

– Agricultural revolution

• Stage 2: High growth

– Industrial Revolution

• Stage 3: Moderate growth

• Stage 4: Low growth

– Zero population growth (ZPG)


Demographic Transition

Figure 2-15



• Population pyramids

– A bar graph showing a place’s age and sex

composition

– Shape of the pyramid is determined mainly by the

CBR

– Age distribution

• Dependency ratio

– Sex distribution

• Sex ratio


Population Pyramids

Figure 2-19



• Countries are in different stages of the

demographic transition

– Three examples:

• Cape Verde = High growth

– Stage 2 since the 1950s

• Chile = Moderate growth


• Denmark = Low growth




• Demographic transition & world population

growth

– Most countries = stage 2 or stage 3 of the

Demographic Transition

• Stages 2 and 3 are characterized by significant

population growth

– No country is in stage 1 of the demographic

transition

– It is easier to cause a drop in the CDR than in

the CBR


Why Might Overpopulation be a Concern?

• Malthus on overpopulation

– An Essay on the Principle of Population

(1798): Population grows geometrically

while food supply grows arithmetically

– Criticism of Malthus includes the following:

• Pessimistic viewpoint

• Failure to consider technological innovation

• Marxist critique


Malthus: Theory & Reality

Figure 2-25



• Declining birth rates

– Reasons for declining birth rates

• Reliance on economic development

• Distribution of contraceptives

– Reducing birth rates with contraception


Family Planning

Figure 2-30



• World health threats

– The epidemiologic transition

• Stage 1: Pestilence and famine

– The Black Plague

– Pandemics



• World health

threats

– The epidemiologic

transition

• Stage 2: Receding

pandemics

– Cholera and

Dr. John Snow

Figure 2-31





• Stage 3: Degenerative diseases

– Most significant: Heart disease and cancer

• Stage 4: Delayed degenerative diseases

– Medical advances prolong life





• A possible stage 5: Reemergence of infectious

diseases?

– Three reasons why it might be happening:

» Evolution

» Poverty

» Improved travel


The Most Lethal Infectious Disease: AIDS

Figure 2-33


The End.

Up next: Migration

Figure 3-1

Chapter 2: Population · 2016. 12. 17. · © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Chapter 2: Population The Cultural Landscape: An Introduction to Human Geography

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